"Insistent Presence: Contemporary African Art from the Chazen Collection," the current exhibit at the Chazen Museum of Art, is one that leaves attendees ruminating on the exciting combination of juxtaposition, storytelling and an abundance of African experiences.
The guest curator of the exhibition is Margaret Nagawa. She has strategically built a forum for human life depicted through art, touching on spirituality, physical life and human creations.
“[They represent] artists keen on affirming the humanity of Africans and those critical of postcolonial governments,” the Chazen website reads. Despite the many art styles and vast diversity of the 24 artists represented from Africa's heterogeneous continent and diasporic communities, one key element unites the exhibit: the use of juxtaposition.
Emptiness and fullness, noise and silence, light and dark — these are all components of the exhibit. From the very first look into the gallery, “Ruka,” a black-and-white painting of a dancer by Tanzanian artist Sungi Mlengeya, contrasts strikingly with the orange wall it hangs upon. The dancer’s toned limbs are beautifully highlighted by a sterile white background, calling to attention how a body can make a blank space a vibrant one. This exhibit is an experience for the viewer to contemplate the many ways life can be represented.
The exhibit has three portions: “The Body in Society,” “The Artist Is Present” and “The Absent Body.”
"The exhibit was full of many different things. Each new space had its own unique story to tell," said exhibit viewer Kaylie Baier.
“The Body in Society” illustrates human interaction. It builds upon the idea of ubuntu, which is an African term in several countries that ties one's own identity to the condition and health of relationships. The art displayed provides commentary on patriarchal power dynamics, spirituality, religious influences and political unrest.
Omar Ba, the Senegalian artist's piece, “Afrique, Afrique, Afrique,” is an imaginative depiction of global unity in the absence of racism and oppression. Malik Welli's photographs “Sisters of Joseph Cluny, Saint-Louis” and “Mosque of the Divinity” depict the infiltration of the French Catholic congregation and Chinese communist doctrine into Senegal, demonstrating a plurality of influence.
This section of the exhibit is a portrayal of both human turmoil and gathering. Neo Matloga's work “Ompile Korobela” literally stitches bodies together in a decadent black-and-white collage, signaling to viewers that we as individuals have multiple identities that thrive in the spaces we occupy.
“The Artist is Present” is a multifaceted showcase of the artists' personal histories in combination with reflections on the past and the conditions of society. The film “Ke Sale Teng,” animated by Lebohang Kganye, is a black-and-white journey in which pages of history pop out at the viewer, detailing migration and building out of newness.
One of the biggest juxtapositions of the exhibit is a colossal bronze statue by Mary Sibande that invites viewers into the center of the exhibit. Previously residing in the Chazen’s entryway, a bronze gown flows off of “Sophie,” an ego the artist developed to relay stories of females dominating industries in apartheid South Africa. The statue is the only human sculpture in the exhibit, juxtaposing the 2d art and 3d objects with its lifelike stature. "Sophie," walks forward, personifying the space and directioning viewers further into it.
“The Absent Body” is a series of objects and photographs in which the human presence is represented yet missing. Immy Mali's “Virtually Mine” is a hanging display of glass phone screens with messages relaying Ugandan economic struggle and the digital human presence that is born out of modern romance. The tall glass installment in the shape of a man's body chimes together, juxtaposing the museum's silent ambiance with sharp clashes.
One of the pieces museum-goers flocked to was Gonçalo Mabunda's “The Throne of Languages,” a chair fully faceted from scraps of AK-47s and materials from Mozambique's liberation struggle and civil war. The chair has a face built into it, bringing new life to otherwise daunting remnants of the past.
“Insistent Presence” is an opportunity to realize the many ways the human body can populate a space through artwork, relationships and through an atmosphere. To have such abundant stories in one place is a gift to Madison.
The free exhibition will be on display until Dec. 23.
